35 killed, 40 wounded in twin car bomb attacks in Baghdad

Nearly three dozen people have been killed and tens of others injured in two car bomb attacks that struck a busy mall in the violence-plagued Iraqi capital city of Baghdad.

A security official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said just before Friday midnight a car rigged with explosives was detonated at the car park of al-Nakheel Mall in Palestine Street in eastern Baghdad. An assailant blew up his explosive-laden car at the busy street outside the mall building shortly afterwards.

The explosions set ablaze a number of cars parked at the parking lot and outside the mall, and damaged many others.

An unnamed source at Baghdad Health Directorate told Arabic-language al-Forat news agency that 35 people have been killed and 40 others injured in both acts of terror.

No individual or group has claimed responsibility for the assaults yet, but such incidents are usually blamed on the Takfiri Daesh terrorist group.

Smoke rises from a blast caused by a fire at an arms depot in eastern Baghdad, Iraq, on September 2, 2016. (Reuters)

The United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq says a total of 691 Iraqis were killed and another 1,016 wounded in acts of terror and armed conflict in August.

According to the UN mission, the number of civilian fatalities stood at 473. Violence also claimed the lives of 218 members of Iraqi security forces. A great portion of last month’s fatalities was recorded in Baghdad, where 231 civilians were killed.

The northern and western parts of Iraq have been plagued by violence ever since Daesh terrorists mounted an offensive there more than two years ago. The militants have been committing vicious crimes against all ethnic and religious communities in the country, including Shias, Sunnis, Kurds and Christians.

The Iraqi army and volunteer fighters from the Popular Mobilization Units have been engaged in joint operations to retake militant-held regions.